Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Trump win has basically killed the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership, a key economic component of the pivot to Asia policy, which is widely seen as an attempt to contain the rise of China

Trump win has basically killed the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership, a
key economic component of the pivot to Asia policy, which is widely seen as an
attempt to contain the rise of China

Along with the killing of the TPP, the overall pivot to
Asia policy in its current form will probably be amended substantially or
re-engineered as Trump is unlikely to carry on one of Obama’s major political
legacies.

But mainland trade and finance officials are deeply concerned by Trump’s
repeated threats to impose tariffs of up to 45 per cent on imported Chinese
goods and label China as a currency manipulator. They are also worried by his
comments accusing China of waging an economic war against the US and stealing
American jobs. In April, asked about Trump’s tariff proposal on imported
Chinese goods, the then Finance Minister Lou Jiwei ( 樓繼偉 ) called him “an irrational
type”. This was the first open criticism of Trump from a senior Chinese
official.

Chinese officials believe the Trump
administration will get much tougher on China regarding trade and the yuan,
even if an all-out trade war.